The Last Lecture

These chapters briefly illustrate some of Pausch’s beliefs. The first offers this advice: “Don’t complain, just work harder” (138). Pausch reflects on Sandy, a landlord he had during graduate school who became a quadriplegic. Although Sandy had a lot to complain about, he approached life in a very matter-of-fact fashion and worked to overcome the obstacles in front of him. Pausch equates Sandy’s attitude with that of baseball player Jackie Robinson, who did not turn negative or bitter despite the awful racial prejudice he faced in the big league. The lesson of this chapter is that “complaining does not work as a strategy. We all have finite time and energy. Any time we spend whining is unlikely to help us achieve our goals. And it won’t make us happier” (139).

In Chapter 33 Pausch introduces a woman who was overwhelmed by debt. On Tuesday and Thursday nights she attended a yoga and meditation class to combat her stress. Pausch suggests it would be more practical to deal with the disease rather than the symptom: By getting a part-time job on those nights she usually went to yoga, she could use the money to pay off her debt. In other words, work to fix the real problem, and don’t find ways to mask its symptoms.

Finally, in Chapter 34 Pausch offers direct advice about not “[obsessing] over what people think” (141). He used this wisdom with his students and colleagues, assuring them that he would always let them know what he was thinking out loud.